"It seems the Chairman has a board meeting to expedite," Lu Rong said, his eyes locking onto Li Ming’s in a cold, daring challenge.
"Quite so, Mr. CFO," Li Ming ground out, his gaze flickering toward Chatchawin. The smile on the younger man’s face only deepened as the danger of the game escalated.
"I shall not remain idle. This Monday, I will bring this matter before the board. We will deliberate on the framework of the Thai Sandbox together."
"With pleasure, Mr. Chairman," Chatchawin replied, his smile as calm as a frozen lake.
Li Ming signaled to Rosé with a slight nod. The woman disappeared, returning moments later with an exquisitely carved wooden box.
"I have a special gift for you... a token of our friendship."
Rosé stepped forward and opened the box. Inside lay a Mutton-Fat white jade carving of a Dragon and a Tiger, mid-leap, lunging toward each other. Both beasts gripped a single, mystical orb between their claws, held in a death-grip.
"Thais revere the Tiger; the Chinese honor the Dragon," Li Ming murmured, his voice hauntingly soft as he looked out the window. Far below, a pickup truck was hurtling toward the vast, dark expanse of the river. "This was a custom commission. It signifies that when the Dragon and Tiger join forces, their power can hold up the heavens and the earth."
Out on the riverside road, the pickup truck roared, its engine screaming in a desperate mechanical wail. The flanking cars lunged, ramming the truck to force it off balance. Ohm and Pheuak were tossed like ragdolls by the violent impacts.
Ohm, driven by pure survival instinct, lunged forward. He slammed his palm against the driver’s throat.
"Who sent you to kill us?!" Ohm roared, his eyes ablaze. But the driver only let out a low, chilling laugh. He floored the accelerator, aiming the truck straight for the unguarded curve of the riverbank.
The engine let out one last, thunderous snarl before the driver bailed. He threw open the door and leapt into the night, rolling expertly across the asphalt. He left Ohm and Pheuak alone to face the Reaper, heading straight for the watery depths.
The world ahead turned into a blinding flash of city lights reflecting on the water. The truck vaulted over the curb, suspended in mid-air for a heartbeat... before plummeting into the void.
Whirrrrr...
CRASH!
The frigid waters of the Huangpu River shattered the glass, surging through the vents with a violent roar. Above, the distant screams of onlookers echoed from the banks.
Inside the cabin, the impact created a terrifying state of weightlessness. Ohm and Pheuak drifted in the dark, illuminated only by the ghostly glow of the headlights still functioning beneath the surface. The truck sank slowly... silent, and cold.
Ohm clawed for air, his heart hammering against his ribs as if it would burst. Pheuak screamed, but his voice was instantly swallowed by the icy currents. They both knew... in a matter of seconds, they might never breathe again.
The synchronized chime of message alerts rang out across the private suite, startling everyone in the room.
Chairman Li Ming was the first to pick up his phone, disregarding all etiquette.
"It seems an unforeseen incident has occurred on the road right outside this restaurant," Li Ming said, his voice flat, but his eyes gleaming with hidden malice. "The security system has sent out an alert."
Adisorn opened his own message. A news flash of a vehicle plunging into the Huangpu River hit him like a physical blow to the chest. The identity confirmation of the victims made his world tilt.
Ohm and Pheuak...
The image of the mangled truck, with dark silt swirling out of twisted doors, made his heart wither. He looked up to see the cold, thin smirk on Li Ming’s face. Adisorn’s fists clenched until they shook; a murderous rage boiled within him, yet he had to maintain his facade of professional composure.
Gawin, sitting beside him, turned deathly pale. His eyes trembled as if his entire world had just collapsed.
But the most unsettling reaction came from Chatchawin. He didn't flinch. He didn't even look away from the Old Dragon before him.
"A truly... priceless gift, Mr. Chairman," Chatchawin said, his voice eerily steady. He stared deep into Li Ming’s hollow eyes.
"I hope you like it... Mr. Chatchawin."
Li Ming offered a faint, fleeting smile, but his eyes danced with unmasked derision. He had successfully cut the thorns from Chatchawin’s side, leaving his opponent to sit there in a state of pathetic helplessness.
The chaos on the banks of the Huangpu refused to fade with the city lights.
Adisorn, riding in the CK Group car, ordered the driver to stop mid-way. He hailed a taxi and raced back to the scene, his heart competing with the wail of sirens.
Before him lay the wreckage, freshly hauled from the abyss. It was a mangled hunk of metal, unrecognizable. Dark mud leaked from the warped doors. Adisorn sprinted toward a rescue worker who was packing up his gear.
"The people in that car... where are they?!" His voice was hoarse, trembling in a way it never had before.
The officer looked up with weary eyes. "Oh... a unit already came for the bodies."
"Who?! Who took them?!" Adisorn demanded, his voice cracking.
"Not sure... some agency. They showed the paperwork and moved them out immediately. That’s all the information I can give you."
The officer walked away, leaving Adisorn standing alone amidst the soaking ruins of the vehicle. He gripped his fists, staring at the wreckage that once held the smiles of two vibrant men. Overwhelmed by a tidal wave of guilt, he pulled out his phone and dialed Chatchawin’s number immediately.
The headlights of the car parked by the river cast long, jagged shadows on the ground. Gawin followed behind Chatchawin, his footsteps light but his body taut with a fury that had reached its boiling point.
"You knew, didn't you...?" Gawin hissed through grit teeth.
Chatchawin stopped and slowly turned around. His eyes remained as still as a graveyard.
"No one can predict every move... This is simply the mechanism of a game played by an opponent."
"But not like this!" Gawin’s fists shook with rage, his face flushed with a vengeful heat. "Ohm and Pheuak shouldn't have to die for your greed!"
"Mr. Gawin... didn't you want to reach a height where the board could never hold you back again?"
"Not by stepping over corpses!"
Chatchawin locked eyes with him, staring straight into the depths of Gawin's soul.
"Then you should know better than anyone... what it costs to stand at the summit of the mountain."
Gawin’s eyes welled with a devastating sense of betrayal. "How can you be this cold... after what happened to them?"
Chatchawin’s lips curled into a faint smile one colder than the midnight wind off the river.
"To strike back now is to admit defeat in his game," he whispered, stepping closer. "Ask yourself... do you want to be just another pawn in his hand, or do you want to be the one who finally topples the board with your own two hands?"